Banks High basketball match-up in the pink for Komen

BANKS – Members of the Banks Lady Braves and Tillamook Cheesemakers, this year's top high school girl's basketball teams, have been rivals since sixth grade. The scoreboard declared Tillamook the victor, 50-36, at Tuesday night's match-up at Banks High. But in the bigger scheme of things, both teams won, bringing in a standing room only crowd and approximately $1,700 for the Oregon and Southwest Washington affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

The idea to raise money for the local Komen affiliate grew from a simple choice: What color T-shirts should the Lady Braves sport for warm-up? When the girls chose pink, the color associated with breast cancer organizations, the fundraiser was born.

The girls and boys varsity basketball teams led the Banks High effort, promoting the game, and selling 300 pink T-shirts for $7 each, while Tillamook teams undertook the same effort. Tuesday's vocal, capacity crowd was awash in pink socks and T-shirts. Their enthusiasm led to a $160 winning bid for a pink basketball auctioned at halftime.

The Lady Braves coach, Nick Rizzo, returned to Banks this year after several years coaching elsewhere. During that time, his wife underwent treatment for breast cancer, which the team didn't know about when they decided to hold Pink T-shirt Night, Rizzo said.

Rizzo said the night was outstanding. "I don't know if that gym has been that full in years." And while he admitted that this wasn't the best his talented team has played, in the bigger scheme of things, no one walked away a loser.